GOP outspent Dems in council races

Zapf outspent Boot 4 to 1; Cate spent three times more than Kim

San Diego  In the two weeks leading up to the June 3 primary election, Republicans dramatically outspent their Democratic opponents in two hotly contested San Diego City Council races, disclosure forms submitted this week show.

Republican Lorie Zapf, who captured the District 2 seat without a runoff by getting 54 percent of the vote, spent more than four times as much as Democrat Sarah Boot, who was supported by 38 percent of voters.

Zapf spent $214,000 to Boot’s $51,000 between May 18 and June 30, the period covered by this week’s campaign disclosures. But virtually all of both candidates’ expenditures came before election day.

Republican Chris Cate, who faces a November runoff in District 6 because he fell short of 50 percent, outspent Democrat Carol Kim by more than a three-to-one margin. Cate got 47 percent of the vote in the primary, while Kim got 31 percent.

Fundraising has picked up for Kim since the election, however, so she might not be outspent by as much in November.

Kim must win Nov. 4 for Democrats to retain a 6-3 majority on the council that allows them to override vetoes by Republican Mayor Kevin Faulconer. But Democrats will still have a 5-4 majority even if Cate wins.

Between May 18 and June 30, Kim raised nearly $69,000, compared to just over $87,000 for Cate. That’s a much smaller advantage than Cate had during the primary, where he raised more than $300,000 and Kim raised just over $100,000.

Kim also led Cate in cash on hand June 30, with $63,000 to his $28,000.

Kim attributes her uptick to the absence in the race of third-place finisher Libertarian Mitz Lee, who got nearly 13 percent of the vote in the primary, and “overall excitement” about Kim’s candidacy.

“I’m confident my values represent the people of the 6th District,” Kim said Friday, noting that the district has roughly an equal number of Republicans and Democrats. “This race is winnable in November.”

Cate said Friday that he was confident his campaign would continue its momentum, but also said he was concerned Kim would be more flush with cash this fall than she was this spring.

“We fully expect to be outspent during the general election as labor bosses will put hundreds of thousands of dollars into my opponent’s campaign,” he said.

Kim countered that Cate has received a significant share of his money from “downtown special interests.”

In the Zapf race, in addition to outspending Boot, she got greater support than her opponent from political action committees that raised and spent money in the race.

One committee supporting Boot spent $66,000 during the disclosure period, while two committees supporting Zapf spent more than $152,000 total.